Disabling-lock for ordnance.



ATENT" UNITED STATES erica..

CONSUELO A. SEOE, OF MERRIFIELD, VIRGINIA.

DISABLING-LOCK FOR ORDNANCE..

SPECIFICATION forming part Of LSUEI'S. Patent NO. 716,946, dated December 30, 1902.

Application led February 1l, 1902, Serial No. 93,583. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, CONSUELO A. SEOANE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Merrifield, in the county of Fairfax and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Disabling Emergency- Locks for Ordnancegand I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to l make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which forni a part-of this specification.

My invention relates to disabling emergency-loeks for ordnance, and has for its object the production of mechanism performing the function of a permutation or combination lock 0r other secret fastening device located within ihe'gun and inaccessible from without otherwise than herein provided and capable of beingopened only by those possessing the key or combination. Such mechanism-I apply to the breech of a gun to lock the breech- 'block in place, thereby making it practically impossible of operation by an enemy in case of capture of the piece.

By the use ofmy invention a cannon may be as effectually disabled, so far as strangers to its lock are concerned, as if it were spiked or otherwise partially or wholly destroyed. Should the gun be recaptured by its original batterymen, it is quickly made ready for service by unlocking the block.

My invention is intended chiei y for employ.

ment in emergencies to render the weapon to all intents and purposes useless to its captors, who cannot turn it against the men originally serving it.

Each constituent element of my'invention is described in detail and its individual offlee, together with the inode of operation of the whole, fully explained hereinbelow.

I accomplish the objects stated by means of the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, of Which-.-

Figure 1 represents a vertical section of a portion of the breech of a gun, showing my invention in position and in connection with those parts of the piece with which it is concerned. Figs. 2 and 3 `show top plan views of the recessed locking-disks, the bolt-disks,

accidental blows is placed the dial-holding pan D. This element is ordinarily a flat cylinder having a central circular recess d. Vithin the recess is seated the revoluble dial E, and it is retained by the-marked ring F, through which the screws G and II pass. These screws also piercer the dial-pan D and are tapped into the jacket, thus serving to hold all the parts mentioned in posi-tion. The central orifice d inthe bottom of the dial-pan D di'verges and compresses a washer of packing material d2, which encircles the bolt. The

office of thiswasher or ring of packing is to cause a certain amount of friction with the bolt. When the bolt is withdrawn, therefore, it is held in its outermost position.

Letter J designates the head of the bolt K. Head J is secured to the bolt by the screw j or in any other suitable way. Bolt K passes through the center of revoluble dial`E,.a nd immediately beneath the head the portion k of the bolt is squared in order that the dialE may be turned when'the bolt-head is rotated. At some point the bolt K is bored diametrically or slotted to form a hole 7c', which weakens the bolt at that point. The reason for thus weakening the bolt is to cause it to break at the bored point if any extraordinary attempt is made to withdraw it through the jacket from the outside, as more fully explained hereinbelow. Bolt K passes through a' hole bored in the jacket A and passes similarly through the base-ring B and into the breechblockI C, which is properly provided with a bolt-hole c to receive the end of the bolt.

The mechanism of the lock, which may be of any selected descriptiomis sunk in the in terior surface of the jacket, and is therefore ICO entirely out of reach from without when the breech is locked except by way of the bolt K or its passage.

Letter a designates the chamber formed in the jacket to receiye the lock mechanism. Base-plate L covers the mouth of this chamber and is held in place by screws Z Z. To the base-plate is secu red the fixed shouldered cylindrical pillar M, its twoV shoulders being marked m and m, asindicated. The pillarM is held to the base-plate by the screw m2, and immediately below the plate a collar N encircles the pillar. Between collar N and shoulder m of the pillar is located the first locking-disk O, and beyond the othershoulder m' of the pillar is placed the second lockingdisk P. These locking-disks are ordinarily, though not essentially, duplicates, and a description of disk O will answer for both. It has a central oriice o for the pillar and a. small recess 0' opening into orice o, which will be referred to again. From its periphery to its central orice a sectoral portion is cut away, leaving the recess 02. Disk P possesses corresponding features, the central orifice'being designated by letter p, the small interior recess by 1J', and the sectoral recess by p2. The locking-disks O and P are loose upon the pillar, but each is prevented from fully rotating by the engagement of the pins m3 and m4 with the small interior recesses o' and p' ofthe locking-disks.

, lt will be observed in Fig. l that the boltK passes through the chamber a and through tne base-plate L. Jithinthe chamber and suitably..attached to the bolt are the boltdisks Q and R. These elements are flat cylinders, as illustrated. Immediately below the bolt-disks Q and R are the lugs S and T,

adjnstably secured to the bolt by the setscrews s and t. I customarily place these lugs to project oppositely as drawn; but their positions may be modified if it is de` sired to make a change in the reading of the dial or combination of the lock. A change ot' combination would be eected also by using a ring differently marked from that illustrated. It will be noted in Figs. 2 and 3 that the lugs areV slightly longer than the radii of the bolt-disks, and by reason of this additional length it will be` understood that should the bolt be turned entirely around in either direction the locking-diskswould be returned to the positions in the figures-that is to say, each locking-disk would interpose a corner immediately below each bolt-disk and prevent the withdrawal of the bolt either partiallyl or wholly from the breech-block. lf, however, the bolt be turned first in one direction to a predetermined extent, that point being read upon the dial and marked' ring, and then in the other direction' to another prearranged dial-reading, each f the locking-disks may be left in. a position indicated by the broken lines in Fig. 2, and by turning the boltto bring the lugs into the positions shown in Figs. 2 andk 3, this third point being a third reading of the dial, the

` tirely freed from engagement with the boltdisks Q and R when the bolt is drawn.

The engagement ofthe pins m3 and m4 with the small interior recesses o' and p' of the locking-disks O and P prevent` the disks from being turned far enough to take them out of the control of the turning lugs S and T. whichever way the lugs turn the lockingdisks wifll be rotated only within the limits of the engagement effected by the pins and internal recesses. drawn or inserted the locking-disks cannot be jarred out of a position from whichl vthey may be turned to agree with the necessary dial-readings. I

In constructing the parts itis believed to be within the purview of my invention to make the lug S and the bolt-disk Q in one piece and the lug T and bolt-disk R also in one'piece, as they turn together.

In assembling the parts thepillar M, bearing the locking-cylinder O, is attached to the base-plate L. The base-ring'B and breech- `lNhether the bolt be with-v In, Figs. 2 and 3 it will be noted that' block C of the gun being removed the locking-cylinder P is placed in its position at the bottom of cavity a, and the lower half k2 of the bolt K, to which the bolt-disks andlugs have been secured, is associated with the parts on the plate in such manner that the cylinder O lies partly betweenthe two boltdisks Q and R. tion theextremitycf pillar M can be passed through the locking-cylinder P, pin m4 en.-

gaging recess p', andatthe same" time the lower portion of bolt K is moved downwardly throughjaoket Aof the gun. Plate Lis fixed in its seat by screws Z. Base-ringB of the gun being now screwed into jacket A, as is IOO N ow by careful manipula- Y les IIO

customary', the remaining half k3 of bolt K is passed from the interior through the base-ring and joined to the lower part of the bolt, as indicated. Thenthe dial-pan D, the

dial E, engaging the squared end k of the bolt, and finally the head J of the bolt, are all located as shown in Fig. 1.

To determine exactly how far the^dialE must be turned forward and backward to move the locking-cylinders O and P into positions permitting the bolt-disks to pass, it is my practice to, set up the entire mechanism before it is pnt into the `gun and .to ascertain by observation the necessary relative dialreadings for a given adjustment of the lugs S and T.' l,

All the locking mechanism being inclosed in the metal of the breech and capable of being` reached by any one seeking to destroy it only -by way of the bolt or bolt-hole, if the bolt is weakened anyattempt to draw it out byl undue force breaks itgat the hole k', and it canclosed in the metal oit' the not thereafter be reached by any tool. The dials and pan and bolt-head may be entirely broken ol -without unlocking the breechblock, and the gun could not be employed by an venemy against the original batteryme'n, as has been repeatedly done in a recent War. When captnre'is imminent, the oicer whose duty it is locks the gun by the emergency-lock, and excepting the possession of very unusual knowledge and skill on the part of the enemy the piece is wholly disabled without injuring it in any part.

The dial and its neighboring elements may be placed at any point on the surface of the jacketat [hebreech` of the gun. Itis my practice to place these elements on the lower side of the jacket, as indicated in Fig. l, where they-Will not be likely to be disturbed in the regular working of the piece.

I am aware that additional locks have been employed in connection with the breechblocks of cannon, and I do not claim that feature broadly. f

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. In a disabling emergency-lock for ordnance, the combination ofa gun having a removable breech-block, lock mechanism inbreech of the gun and constructed and arranged-to lock the said breech-block against removal, and devices connected with the said lock mechanism and adapted to operate the lock from the external surface of the gun.

2. In a disabling emergency-lock for ordnance', the combination of a gun having a removable breech-block, lock mechanism inclosed in the metal of the breech of the gunand constructed and arranged to lock the said breech-block against removal, a revoluble dial situated upon the external surface of the gun, and a marked element adjacent to the said dial, the said lock mechanism being connected with and adapted to be operatedbythe said dial.

3. In a disabling emergency-lock for ordnance, the combination of a gun having a removable breech-block, lock mechanism incl'osed in the metal of the breech of the gun and having a revoluble, reciprocating bolt, thesaid lock mechanism being actuated by the revolution 0f the bolt, one end of the said bolt being arranged to engage and lock the breech-block against removal, the remaining end of the bolt passing through the metal of .the gun to the external surface thereof, and

devices constructed to-operate the said bolt. In testimony whereof I afix my signature -in presence of two witnesses.

CONSUELO A. SEOANE. 

